Method and apparatus for making curled decorative grass

ABSTRACT

Curled decorative grass having a variety of configurations and methods for making such decorative grass is provided which, because of its increased bulk, can also be used as a packing material, an animal bedding, cat litter, mulch for soil and a media for plants. The curled decorative grass is produced by curling a substantially flat sheet of material and thereafter cutting the resulting curled sheet of material, or by cutting a pre-curled material.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. Ser. No. 11/489,825, filed Jul.20, 2006; which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/954,724,filed Sep. 30, 2004, now abandoned; which is a continuation-in-part ofU.S. Ser. No. 10/678,294, filed Oct. 3, 2003, now abandoned; which is acontinuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/303,595, filed Nov. 22, 2002, now U.S.Pat. No. 6,669,620, issued Dec. 30, 2003; which is a continuation ofU.S. Ser. No. 09/982,407, filed Oct. 18, 2001, now abandoned; which is acontinuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/591,920, now abandoned; which is acontinuation of U.S. Ser. No. 08/879,242, filed Jun. 19, 1997, nowabandoned; the contents of each of which are hereby expresslyincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to decorative grass and methodsfor producing same, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation,to curled decorative grass and methods for producing same.

2. Brief Description of Prior Art

Decorative grass has been used for many years in Easter baskets and forother decorative purposes. The decorative grass of the prior art hasbeen produced by numerous methods and from a variety of materials suchas polymeric materials, paper, cellophane or the like. Typically, suchmaterials are cut and shredded to produce segments having predetermineddimensions. One such prior art method for making decorative grass isdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,292,266, issued to Weder, et al., wherein aplastic film is extruded and cut into plastic strips which are passedthrough a slow-speed godet, an oven and a high-speed godet so that thestrips are drawn down in width and thickness without breaking. From thehigh-speed godet, the strips or strands are chopped to a desired lengthand conveyed to a storage area for subsequent bagging and packaging.

While the prior art methods for making decorative grass have been widelyaccepted, new and improved methods for making decorative grasses havingimproved aesthetic qualities and bulk are being sought which are lesscostly. It is to such decorative grasses and methods for producing samethat the present invention is directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to curled decorative grass having avariety of configurations and to methods for making such decorativegrass. Because of the increased bulk of the curled decorative grass ofthe present invention, such decorative grass can also be used as apacking material, an animal bedding, cat litter, mulch for soil and amedia for plants. The curled decorative grass is produced by curling asubstantially flat sheet of material and thereafter cutting theresulting curled sheet of material.

In one embodiment of the present invention, curled decorative grasshaving a multi-sided cross configuration, a length, a width and asubstantially clock spring configuration is produced by drawing asubstantially flat sheet or web of material over at least one curl barso as to impart a curl to the sheet or web of material, slitting thecurled sheet or web of material to provide a web of material containinga plurality of curled strips, and thereafter cutting the web of materialcontaining the curled strips into segments to produce decorative grasshaving a substantially clock spring configuration.

In another embodiment of the present invention, decorative grass havinga substantially compression-tension spring or pasta configuration isproduced by providing a sheet or web of material, curling the sheet orweb of material to provide a curled sheet or web of material,oscillating the curled sheet or web of material in a lateral directionwhile slitting the sheet or web of material into a slit web of materialcontaining a plurality of curled strips having a multi-sided crosssection, a length and a width. The curled sheet of material can be slitin the direction of travel of the curled sheet or web of material, orthe curled sheet of material can be slit in a direction substantiallyperpendicular to the direction of travel of the curled sheet or web ofmaterial. When slitting the curled sheet or web of material in thedirection of travel of the curled sheet or web of material (i.e.,machine direction), the curled slit sheet or web of material is cut in adirection perpendicular or oblique to the direction of travel of theslit sheet or web of material.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, curled decorativegrass is produced from a sheet of pre-curled material which isthereafter cut to provide curled decorative grass having increased bulk.

An object of the present invention is to provide a decorative grasshaving improved aesthetic qualities.

Another object of the present invention, while achieving thebefore-stated object, is to provide a method for producing a decorativegrass having improved aesthetic qualities and bulk which is costeffective.

Yet another object of the present invention while achieving thebefore-stated objects, is to provide curled decorative grass having avariety of configurations.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description when read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings and appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass having a clock spring configuration in accordance withthe present invention.

FIG. 2A is a top plan view of a segment of curled decorative grasshaving a clock spring configuration.

FIG. 2B is a side view of the curled decorative grass of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3 is a schematic representation of another system for making curleddecorative grass having a clock spring configuration in accordance withthe present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of another system for making curleddecorative grass having a clock spring configuration in accordance withthe present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of another system for making curleddecorative grass having a clock spring configuration in accordance withthe present invention.

FIG. 6 is a fragmental top plan view of a retaining assembly formaintaining a slit web of curled material in a substantially planarcondition between a knife assembly for slitting the curled web ofmaterial and a cutting assembly for cutting the curled web of materialinto curled segments of decorative grass.

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the restraining assembly of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass having a curl along the length and across the widththereof.

FIG. 9 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass having a semi-straw configuration in accordance withthe present invention.

FIGS. 10A-10D are end views of a decorative grass having a semi-strawconfigurations.

FIG. 11 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass having a compression-tension spring or pasta curlconfiguration in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a top plan view of the system of FIG. 11 for making curleddecorative grass having a compression-tension spring or pasta curlconfiguration.

FIG. 13 is a pictorial representation of decorative grass having acompression-tension spring or pasta curl configuration.

FIG. 14 is a schematic representation of another system for makingcurled decorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic representation of yet another system for makingcurled decorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a schematic representation of still another system for makingcurled decorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass in accordance with the present invention having arestraining assembly disposed between the device for slitting the curledweb of material and the cutting device for cutting the slit web toproduce curled decorative grass in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 is a fragmental, schematic representation of another system formaking curled decorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a schematic representation of a system for making apre-curled material which, upon cutting into segments, provides curleddecorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a schematic representation of another system for making apre-curled material which, upon cutting into segments, provides curleddecorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the pre-curled material of FIG. 20.

FIG. 22 is a schematic representation of a system for making curleddecorative grass utilizing a pre-curled material.

FIG. 23 is a schematic representation of another system for makingcurled decorative grass utilizing a pre-curled material.

FIG. 24 is a schematic representation of yet another system for makingcurled decorative grass utilizing a pre-curled material.

FIG. 25 is a schematic representation of still another system for makingcurled decorative grass utilizing a pre-curled material.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of strands of decorative grass connectedvia an attach point.

FIG. 27 is a fragmental top plan view of a curl bar of a system formaking curled decorative grass in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 28 is a fragmental side elevational view of a curl bar of a systemfor making curled decorative grass in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 29 is a fragmental side elevational view of a curl bar of a systemfor making curled decorative grass in accordance with the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a system10 for making curled decorative grass 12 in accordance with the presentinvention. The curled decorative grass 12 has a clock springconfiguration which provides the curled decorative grass 12 withimproved bulk. Thus, the curled decorative grass 12 is especially suitedfor use in Easter baskets, or as packing material, animal bedding, catlitter, mulch for soil and media for plants.

The system 10 includes a roll of material 14 which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 16 capable of having a curlimparted thereto. The roll of material 14 is supported on a mandrel 18having a brake assembly 20 operably connected thereto so that the sheetor web of material 16 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 14. The sheet or web of material 16 withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 14 is drawn over a curling edge 22 of a curl bar 24 so as toprovide a curled sheet or web of material 26. The curling edge 22 of thecurl bar 24 is angularly disposed relative to the travel path of thesheet or web of material 16 so that as the sheet or web of material 16is drawn over the curling edge 22 of the curl bar 24, the curled sheetor web of material 26 is produced.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 22 of the curl bar 24relative to the sheet or web of material 16 can vary widely and will bedependent to a large degree on the amount and type of curl to beimparted to the sheet or web of material 16, as well as to the curlingproperties of the sheet or web of material 16. Generally, however, thecurling edge 22 of the curl bar 24 will be disposed at an angle of fromabout 15 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to the sheet or web ofmaterial 16.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 16 asthe sheet or web of material 16 is drawn over the curling edge 22 of thecurl bar 24, the system 10 further includes a pair of tension or niprollers 30 and 32 positioned downstream of the curl bar 24 to ensureproper angular disposition of the sheet or web of material 16 as thesheet or web of material 16 is drawn over the curling edge 22 of thecurl bar 24. The curled sheet or web of material 26, upon passagethrough the tension rollers 30 and 32, is fed into a slitter or shredder34 where the curled sheet or web of material 26 is slit to provide aslit sheet or web of material 36 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 26 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 36 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method anddevice. Such common methods of slitting the curled sheet or web ofmaterial 26 include: (a) slitting the curled sheet or web of material 26to produce side-by-side strips of material wherein the longer dimensionof the strips is in the direction of travel of the curled sheet or webof material 26, i.e., the machine direction; or (b) slitting the curledsheet or web of material 26 so that the longer dimension of the stripsof material are oblique to the direction of travel of the curled sheetor web of material 26, i.e., obliquely to the machine direction.

The slit sheet or web of material 36 is then passed through a cuttingunit 38 where the curled strips of the slit sheet or web of material 36are cut to form the curled decorative grass 12 having a clock springconfiguration substantially as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Anyconventional device and method can be employed to cut the slit sheet orweb of material 36 to form the curled decorative grass 12. Examples ofsuch conventional devices and methods which can be employed to cut theslit sheet or web of material 36 are rotary knives, reciprocatingknives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cuttingand the like.

The curled decorative grass 12 produced by cutting the slit sheet or webof material 36 can then be conveyed to a storage area (not shown) whichmay be in the form of a suitable bin, or the curled decorative grass 12may be conveyed to a packaging machine, or the curled decorative grass12 may be conveyed to a baling machine for baling prior to storage. Asother alternatives, the curled decorative grass 12 may be placed intoboxes or cartons, subjected to further processing immediately or heldfor subsequent processing.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 16. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 16 is paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper having ashape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. The sheet or web of material 16may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on at least onesurface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either in register orout of register with the printed pattern.

The printed pattern can be printed on the sheet or web of material 16 ina conventional manner so that, when the sheet or web of material 16 isslit and cut to produce the curled decorative grass 12, at least asubstantial portion of the curled decorative grass 12 contains at leasta portion of the printed pattern. Further, different colors can beemployed to provide the printed pattern on the sheet or web of material16.

The sheet or web of material 16 can also be embossed so as to providethe sheet or web of material 16 with an embossed pattern. The embossedpattern can be provided on the sheet or web of material 16 so that whenthe sheet or web of material 16 is slit and cut to produce the curleddecorative grass 12, at least a substantial portion of the curleddecorative grass contains at least a portion of the embossed pattern.Further, the sheet or web of material 16 can be provided with anembossed pattern as well as a printed pattern and the embossed patterncan be either in register or out of register with the printed materialand/or printed design. The printed pattern and embossed pattern can beprovided on the sheet or web of material 16 so that when the sheet orweb of material 16 is slit and cut to produce the curled decorativegrass 12, at least a substantial portion of the curled decorative grasscontains at least a portion of the printed pattern and at least aportion of the embossed pattern.

FIG. 3 illustrates schematically a system 10 a for making curleddecorative grass 12 a in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 10 a is similar to the system 10 herein before described exceptfor the application of a shape sustaining or stiffening agent to a sheetor web of material and the drying of the sheet or web of material wettedwith the shape sustaining or stiffening agent.

The system 10 a includes a roll of material 14 a which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 16 a capable of having acurl imparted thereto. The roll of material 14 a is supported on amandrel 18 a having a brake assembly 20 a operably connected thereto sothat the sheet or web of material 16 a can be controllably withdrawnfrom the roll of material 14 a. An effective amount of a shapesustaining or stiffening agent is applied to the sheet or web ofmaterial 16 a to effectively wet the sheet or web of material 16 a by aspray assembly 21 a. The sheet of material 16 a wetted with the shapesustaining or stiffening agent is then drawn over a curling edge 22 a ofa curl bar 24 a so as to provide a curled sheet or web of material 26 a.

Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the sheet or web of material 16 a can beemployed. Examples of liquid compositions containing a stiffening orshape sustaining agent which may be used in the practice of the presentinvention are aqueous starch solutions, aqueous sugar solutions,lacquers, glues and mixtures thereof and liquid, sprayable admixturescontaining water-proofing agents such as silicon-based polymers,latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers, fluorocarbons and mixturesthereof.

The curled sheet or web of material 26 a wetted with the stiffening orshape sustaining agent is then passed through a drier 27 a to provide adried curled sheet or web of material 29 a coated with a stiffening orshape sustaining agent. To maintain the desired tension on the sheet orweb of material 16 a as the sheet or web of material 16 a wetted withthe stiffening or shape sustaining agent is drawn over the curling edge22 a of the curl bar 24 a, the system 10 a further includes a pair oftension or nip rollers 30 a and 32 a positioned downstream of the curlbar 24 a and the drier 27 a to ensure proper angular disposition of thesheet or web of material 16 a as the sheet or web of material 16 a isdrawn over the curling edge 22 a of the curl bar 24 a and through thedrier 27 a. The dried curled sheet or web of material 29 a, upon passagethrough the tension rollers 30 a and 32 a, is fed into a slitter orshredder 34 a where the dried curled sheet or web of material 29 a isslit to provide a slit sheet or web of material 36 a having a pluralityof curled strips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the dried curled sheet or web of material 29 a toproduce the slit sheet or web of material 36 a having a plurality ofcurled strips of predetermined width can be accomplished using themethods and devices herein before described with reference to FIG. 1.The slit sheet or web of material 36 a is then passed through a cuttingunit 38 a where the curled strips of the slit sheet or web of material36 a are cut to form the curled decorative grass 12 a.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 16 a. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 16 a is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. The sheet or web of material 16 amay have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on at least onesurface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either in register orout of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 4 illustrates schematically a system 10 b for making curleddecorative grass 12 b in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 10 b is similar to the system 10 herein before described exceptfor the application of a shape sustaining or stiffening agent to acurled sheet or web of material and the drying of the curled sheet orweb of material wetted with the shape sustaining or stiffening agent.

The system 10 b includes a roll of material 14 b which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 16 b capable of having acurl imparted thereto. The roll of material 14 b is supported on amandrel 18 b having a brake assembly 20 b operably connected thereto sothat the sheet or web of material 16 b can be controllably withdrawnfrom the roll of material 14 b. The sheet or web of material 16 bwithdrawn from the roll of material 14 b is drawn over a curling edge 22b of a curl bar 24 b so as to provide a curled sheet or web of material26 b. The curling edge 22 b of the curl bar 24 b is angularly disposedrelative to the travel path of the sheet or web of material 16 b so thatas the sheet or web of material 16 b is drawn over the curling edge 22 bof the curl bar 24 b, the curled sheet or web of material 26 b isproduced.

An effective amount of a shape sustaining or stiffening agent is appliedto the curled sheet or web of material 26 b to effectively wet thecurled sheet or web of material 26 b by a spray assembly 21 b. Thecurled sheet of material 26 b wetted with the shape sustaining orstiffening agent is then passed through a drier 27 b to provide a driedcurled sheet or web of material 29 b coated with a stiffening or shapesustaining agent.

Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the sheet or web of material 16 b can beemployed. Examples of liquid compositions containing a stiffening orshape sustaining agent which may be used in the practice of the presentinvention are aqueous starch solutions, aqueous sugar solutions,lacquers, glues and mixtures thereof and liquid, sprayable admixturescontaining water-proofing agents such as silicon-based polymers,latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers, fluorocarbons and mixturesthereof.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 16 b asthe sheet or web of material 16 b is drawn over the curling edge 22 b ofthe curl bar 24 b, the system 10 b further includes a pair of tension ornip rollers 30 b and 32 b positioned downstream of the curl bar 24 b andthe drier 27 b to ensure proper angular disposition of the sheet or webof material 16 b as the sheet or web of material 16 b is drawn over thecurling edge 22 b of the curl bar 24 b. The dried curled sheet or web ofmaterial 29 b, upon passage through the tension rollers 30 b and 32 b,is fed into a slitter or shredder 34 b where the dried curled sheet orweb of material 29 b is slit to provide a slit sheet or web of material36 b having a plurality of curled strips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 29 b to produce theslit sheet or web of material 36 b having a plurality of curled stripsof predetermined width can be accomplished using the methods and devicesherein before described with reference to FIG. 1. The slit sheet or webof material 36 b is then passed through a cutting unit 38 b where thecurled strips of the slit sheet or web of material 36 b are cut to formthe curled decorative grass 12 b.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 16 b. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 16 b is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. The sheet or web of material 16 bmay have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on at least onesurface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either in register orout of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 5 illustrates schematically another system 40 for making thedecorative grass 12 having a clock spring configuration substantially asshown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. The system 40 includes a roll of material 42which consists of a substantially flat sheet or web of material 44capable of having a curl imparted thereto. The roll of material 42 issupported on a mandrel 46 having a brake assembly 48 operably connectedthereto so that the sheet or web of material 44 can be controllablywithdrawn from the roll of material 42. The sheet or web of material 44withdrawn from the roll of material 42 is fed into a slitter or shredder50 where the sheet or web of material 44 is slit to provide a slit sheetor web of material 52 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width.

The system 40 further includes a pair of tension or nip rollers 54 and56, a curl bar 58 having a curling edge 60 and a cutting unit 62. Thenip or tension rollers 54, 56 are positioned upstream of the curl bar 58and cooperates with the cutting unit 62 to ensure proper angulardisposition of the slit sheet or web of material 52, as well as thedesired amount of tension on the slit sheet or web of material 52, asthe slit sheet or web of material 52 is drawn over the curling edge 60of the curl bar 58 to provide a curled slit sheet or web of material 64.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 60 of the curl bar 58relative to the slit sheet or web of material 52 can vary widely andwill be dependent to a large degree on the amount and type of curl to beimparted to the slit sheet or web of material 52, as well as to thecurling properties of the sheet or web of material 44. Generally,however, the curling edge 60 of the curl bar 58 will be disposed at anangle of from about 15 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to a slitsheet or web of material 52.

The curled slit sheet or web of material 64, after passage over thecurling edge 60 of the curl bar 58, is fed into the cutting unit 62where the curled slit sheet or web of material 64 is cut to form thecurled decorative grass 12 having a clock spring configurationsubstantially as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B.

The slitting of the sheet or web of material 44 to produce the slitsheet or web of material 52 can be accomplished using any well knownmethod and device. Such common methods of slitting a sheet or web ofmaterial include: (a) slitting the sheet or web of material 44 toproduce side-by-side strips of material wherein the longer dimension ofthe strips is in the direction of travel of the sheet or web of material44, i.e., the machine direction; or (b) slitting the sheet or web ofmaterial 44 so that the longer dimension of the strips of material areoblique to the direction of travel of the sheet or web of material 44,i.e., obliquely to the machine direction.

The cutting of the curled slit sheet or web of material 64 to form thecurled decorative grass 12 can also be accomplished using any well knownmethod and device. Examples of such conventional devices which can beused as the cutting unit 62 and methods which can be employed to cut thecurled slit sheet or web of material 64 to form the curled decorativegrass 12 having a clock spring configuration are rotary knives,reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, airjet cutting and the like.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, to enhance the uniformity of the curleddecorative grass 12 produced utilizing the system 10 of FIG. 1, it maybe desirable to pass the slit sheet or web of curled material 36 througha restraining assembly 66 disposed between the slitter 34 and thecutting unit 38 so as to maintain the slit sheet or web of curledmaterial 36 in a substantially planar or flattened condition prior tocutting the slit sheet or web of curled material 36 with the cuttingunit 38 to form the curled decorative grass 12. Any suitable apparatuscan be employed as the restraining assembly 66, such as a plurality ofspatially disposed guide wires 68 which extend between the slitter 34and the cutting unit 38 so as to define a passageway 70 through whichthe slit sheet or web of material 36 is drawn or fed through for entryinto and passage through the cutting unit 38.

FIG. 8 illustrates schematically a system 71 for making a curleddecorative grass 72 having a curl imparted along its length and a curlimparted across it width in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 71 includes a roll of material 74 which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 76 capable of having a curlimparted thereto. The roll of material 74 is supported on a mandrel 78having a brake assembly 80 operably connected thereto so that the sheetor web of material 76 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 74. The sheet or web of material 76 withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 74 is drawn over a curling edge 82 of a first curl bar 84 andthen over a curling edge 86 of an oscillating second curl bar 88 whichis oscillated in a lateral direction relative to the direction of travelof the sheet or web of material 76. The curling edge 82 of the firstcurl bar 84 is oriented substantially perpendicular to the direction oftravel of the sheet or web of material 76, i.e., perpendicular to themachine direction; and the curling edge 86 of the oscillating secondcurl bar 88 is disposed in the direction of travel of the sheet or webof material 76, i.e., in the machine direction. Upon drawing the sheetor web of material 76 over the curling edge 82 of the first curl bar 84and the curling edge 86 of the oscillating second curl bar 88, a curledsheet or web of material 90 is formed having curl in the machinedirection and curl in a direction substantially perpendicular to themachine direction. Thus, when the curled sheet or web of material 90 isslit and cut to produce the curled decorative grass 72 in the mannerherein after described, the curled decorative grass 72 is provided witha curl along its length and a curl across its width.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 76 asthe sheet or web of material 76 is drawn over the curling edge 82 of thefirst curl bar 84 and the curling edge 86 of the oscillating second curlbar 88, the system 71 further includes a guide roller 92 and a pair oftension or nip rollers 94 and 96 positioned downstream of theoscillating second curl bar 88 to ensure proper angular disposition ofthe sheet or web of material 76 as the sheet or web of material 76 isdrawn over the curling edges 82 and 86 of the first curl bar 84 and thesecond oscillating curl bar 88, respectively. The curled sheet or web ofmaterial 90, upon passage through the tension rollers 94 and 96, is fedinto a slitter or shredder 98 where the curled sheet or web of material90 is slit to provide a slit sheet or web of material 100 having aplurality of curled strips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 90 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 100 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method anddevice. Such common methods of slitting the curled sheet or web ofmaterial 90 include slitting the curled sheet or web of material 90 toproduce side-by-side strips of material wherein the longer dimension ofthe strips is in the direction of travel of the curled sheet or web ofmaterial 90, i.e., the machine direction; or slitting the curled sheetor web of material 90 so that the longer dimension of the strips ofmaterial are oblique to the direction of travel of the curled sheet orweb of material 90, i.e., oblique to the machine direction.

The slit sheet or web of material 100 is then passed through a cuttingunit 102 where the curled strips are cut to form curled decorative grass72 having a curl imparted along the length and across the width thereof.Any conventional device and method can be employed to cut the slit sheetor web of material 100 to form the curled decorative grass 72. Examplesof such conventional devices and methods which can be employed to cutthe slit sheet or web of material 100 are rotary knives, reciprocatingknives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cuttingand the like.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 76. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 76 is paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper having ashape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 76 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 9 illustrate schematically a system 110 for making curleddecorative grass 112 having a semi-straw configuration. The system 110includes a roll of material 114 which consists of a substantially flatsheet or web of material 116 capable of having a curl imparted thereto.The roll of material 114 is supported on a mandrel 118 having a brakeassembly 120 operably connected thereto so that the sheet or web ofmaterial 116 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll of material114. The sheet or web of material 116 withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 114 is drawn over a curling edge 122 of a curl bar 124 so as toprovide a curled sheet or web of material 126. The curling edge 122 ofthe curl bar 124 is angularly disposed relative to the travel path ofthe sheet or web of material 116 so that as the sheet or web of material116 is drawn over the curling edge 122 of the curl bar 124, the curledsheet or web of material 126 is produced.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 122 of the curl bar 124relative to the sheet or web of material 116 can vary widely and will bedependent to a large degree on the amount and type of curl to beimparted to the sheet or web of material 116, as well as to the curlingproperties of the sheet or web of material 116. Generally, however, thecurling edge 122 of the curl bar 124 will be disposed at an angle offrom about 15 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to the sheet or webof material 116.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 116 asthe sheet or web of material 116 is drawn over the curling edge 122 ofthe curl bar 124, the system 110 further includes a pair of tension ornip rollers 130 and 132 positioned downstream of the curl bar 124 toensure proper angular disposition of the sheet or web of material 116 asthe sheet or web of material 116 is drawn over the curling edge 122 ofthe curl bar 124. The curled sheet or web of material 126, upon passagethrough the tension rollers 130 and 132, is fed into a slitter orshredder 134 where the curled sheet or web of material 126 is sliteither substantially perpendicular or obliquely to the direction oftravel of the curled sheet or web of material 126 to provide curleddecorative grass 112 a-112 d having a semi-straw configurationsubstantially as shown in FIGS. 10A-10D.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 116. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 116 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper havinga shape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. The sheet or web of material 116may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on at least onesurface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either in register orout of register with the printed pattern. Further, different colors canbe employed to provide the printed pattern on the sheet or web ofmaterial 116.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate schematically a system 140 for making adecorative grass 142 having a compression-tension spring or pastaconfiguration substantially as shown in FIG. 13. The system 140 includesa roll of material 144 which consists of a substantially flat sheet orweb of material 146 capable of having a curl imparted thereto. The rollof material 144 is supported on a mandrel 148 having a brake assembly150 operably connected thereto so that the sheet or web of material 146can be controllably withdrawn from the roll of material 144. Anoscillating assembly 152 (FIG. 12) is also connected to the mandrel 148so that the roll of material 144, and thus the sheet or web of material146 controllably withdrawn from the roll of material 144 can belaterally oscillated relative to the direction of travel of the sheet orweb of material 146 (i.e., oscillated in the directions indicated byarrows 154 and 156 of FIG. 12). Brake assemblies for controlling therate of withdrawal of the sheet or web of material 146 from the roll ofmaterial 144 and oscillating assemblies for laterally oscillating theroll of material 144 so that the sheet or web of material 146 withdrawntherefrom is oscillated in a lateral direction are well known in theart. Thus, no further comments or description of the brake assembly 150or the oscillating assembly 152 are believed necessary to enable oneskilled in the art to understand and practice the inventive conceptsdisclosed herein.

The sheet or web of material 146 withdrawn from the roll of material 144is drawn over a curling edge 155 of a curl bar 157 so as to provide acurled sheet or web of material 158. The curling edge 155 of the curlbar 157 is angularly disposed relative to the travel path of the sheetor web of material 146 so that as the sheet or web of material 146 isdrawn over the curling edge 155 of the curl bar 157, a desired curl isimparted to the sheet or web of material 146.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 155 of the curl bar 157relative to the sheet or web of material 146 can vary widely and will bedependent to a large degree on the amount and type of curl to beimparted to the sheet or web of material 146, as well as to the curlingproperties of the sheet or web of material 146. Generally, however, thecurling edge 155 of the curl bar 157 will be disposed at an angle offrom about 15 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to the sheet or webof material 146.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 146 asthe sheet or web of material 146 is drawn over the curling edge 155 ofthe curl bar 157, the system 140 further includes a pair of tension ornip rollers 160 and 162 positioned downstream of the curl bar 157 toensure proper angular disposition of the sheet or web of material 146 asthe sheet or web of material 146 is drawn over the curling edge 155 ofthe curl bar 157 to provide a curled sheet or web of material 158. Thecurled sheet or web of material 158, upon passage through the tensionrollers 160 and 162, is then fed into a slitter and shredding unit 164where the curled sheet or web of material 158 is slit to provide a slitsheet or web of material 166 (FIG. 12) and thereafter the slit sheet orweb of material 166 is shredded or cut into the decorative grass 142having a compression-tension spring or pasta configuration.

The slitting of the curled slit sheet or web of material 158 to providethe slit sheet or web of material 166, and the shredding or cutting ofthe slit sheet or web of material 166 into the decorative grass 142 canbe accomplished using any well known method and devices such as rotaryknives, reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jetcutting, air jet cutting and the like.

The curl bar 157, the tension rollers 160 and 162 and the slitter andshredding unit 164 are each provided with a width greater than the widthof the sheet or web of material 146 so as to accommodate for theoscillation of the sheet or web of material 146 during the production ofthe decorative grass 142 having a compression-tension spring or pastaconfiguration. While the system 140 has been illustrated as having anoscillating assembly for oscillating the roll of material 144, and thusthe sheet or web of material 146, it should be understood that theslitter and shredding unit 164 can also be oscillated, either alone orin combination with the oscillation of the sheet or web of material 146.Also, it should be understood that the oscillating curled sheet or webof material 158 can be maintained under tension while the oscillatingcurled sheet or web of material 158 is slit. Furthermore, theoscillating slit curled sheet or web of material 166 may be passedthrough a restraining assembly prior to cutting the slit curled sheet orweb of material 166 so as to enhance uniformity of the curled decorativegrass.

FIG. 14 illustrates schematically another system 170 for making a curleddecorative grass 172 in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 170 includes a roll of material 174 which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 176 capable of having a curlimparted thereto. The roll of material 174 is supported on a mandrel 178having a brake assembly 180 operably connected thereto so that the sheetor web of material 176 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 174. The sheet or web of material 176 withdrawn from the rollof material 174 is drawn over a curling edge 182 of a curl bar 184. Thecurling edge 182 of the curl bar 184 is oriented in the direction oftravel of the sheet or web of material 176, i.e., in the machinedirection.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 176 asthe sheet or web of material 176 is drawn over the curling edge 182 ofthe curl bar 184, the system 170 further includes a guide roller 186 anda pair of tension or nip rollers 188 and 190 positioned downstream ofthe curl bar 184 to ensure proper angular disposition of the sheet orweb of material 176 as the sheet or web of material 176 is drawn overthe curling edge 182 of the curl bar 184 to provide a curled sheet orweb of material 192. The curled sheet or web of material 192, uponpassage around the guide roller 186 and through the tension rollers 188and 190, is fed into a slitter or shredder 194 where the curled sheet orweb of material 192 is slit to provide a slit sheet or web of material196 having a plurality of curled strips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 192 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 196 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method anddevice. Such common methods of slitting a sheet or web of materialinclude slitting a sheet or web of material to produce side-by-sidestrips of material wherein the longer dimension of the strips is in thedirection of travel of the sheet or web of material, i.e., the machinedirection, or slitting a sheet or web of material so that the longerdimension of the strips of material are oblique to the direction oftravel of the sheet or web of material, i.e., oblique to the machinedirection.

The slit sheet or web of material 196 is then passed through a cuttingunit 198 where the slit sheet or web of material 196 is cut to formcurled decorative grass 172. Any conventional device and method can beemployed to cut the slit sheet or web of material 196 to form the curleddecorative grass 172 such as rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 176. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 176 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper havinga shape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 176 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 15 illustrates schematically another system 200 for making a curleddecorative grass 202 in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 200 includes a roll of material 204 which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 206 capable of having a curlimparted thereto. The roll of material 204 is supported on a mandrel 208having a brake assembly 210 operably connected thereto so that the sheetor web of material 206 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 204. The sheet or web of material 206 withdrawn from the rollof material 204 is drawn over a curling edge 212 of a curl bar 214. Thecurling edge 212 of the curl bar 214 is oriented substantiallyperpendicular to the direction of travel of the sheet or web of material206, i.e., substantially perpendicular to the machine direction.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 206 asthe sheet or web of material 206 is drawn over the curling edge 212 ofthe curl bar 214, the system 200 further includes a guide roller 216 anda pair of tension or nip rollers 218 and 220 to ensure proper angulardisposition of the sheet or web of material 206 as the sheet or web ofmaterial 206 is drawn over the curling edge 212 of the curl bar 214 toprovide a curled sheet or web of material 222. The curled sheet or webof material 222, upon passage around the guide roller 216, over thecurling edge 212 of the curl bar 214 and through the tension rollers 218and 220, is fed into a slitter or shredder 224 where the curled sheet orweb of material 222 is slit to provide a slit sheet or web of material226 having a plurality of curled strips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 222 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 226 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method anddevice. Such common methods of slitting a sheet or web of materialinclude slitting a sheet or web of material to a to producesside-by-side strips of material wherein the longer dimension of thestrips is in the direction of travel of the sheet or web of material,i.e., the machine direction, or slitting a sheet or web of material sothat the longer dimension of the strips of material are oblique to thedirection of travel of the sheet or web of material, i.e., oblique tothe machine direction.

The slit sheet or web of material 226 is then passed through a cuttingunit 228 where the slit sheet or web of material 226 is cut to formcurled decorative grass 202. Any conventional device and method can beemployed to cut the slit sheet or web of material 226 to form the curleddecorative grass 202 such as rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 206. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 206 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper havinga shape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 206 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 16 illustrates schematically another system 230 for making a curleddecorative grass 232 in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 230 includes a roll of material 234 which consists of asubstantially flat sheet or web of material 236 capable of having a curlimparted thereto. The roll of material 234 is supported on a mandrel 238having a brake assembly 240 operably connected thereto so that the sheetor web of material 236 can be controllably withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 234. The sheet or web of material 236 withdrawn from the rollof material 234 is drawn over a curling edge 242 of a first curl bar 244and over a curling edge 246 of a second curl bar 248. The curling edge242 of the first curl bar 244 is oriented in the direction opposite thedirection of travel of the sheet or web of material 236 and the curlingedge 246 of the second curl bar 248 is oriented in the direction oftravel of the sheet or web of material 236.

To maintain the desired tension on the sheet or web of material 236 asthe sheet or web of material 236 is drawn over the curling edges 242 and246 of the first and second curl bars 244 and 248, respectively, thesystem 230 further includes guide rollers 250 and 252 and a pair oftension or nip rollers 254 and 256. The guide roller 250 is positionedupstream from the first curl bar 244, and the guide roller 252 and thetension rollers 254 and 256 are positioned downstream of the second curlbar 248 to ensure proper angular disposition of the sheet or web ofmaterial 236 as the sheet or web of material 236 is drawn over thecurling edges 242 and 246 of the first and second curl bars 244 and 248to provide a curled sheet or web of material 258. The curled sheet orweb of material 258, upon passage around the guide roller 252 andthrough the tension rollers 254 and 256, is fed into a slitter orshredder 260 where the curled sheet or web of material 258 is slit toprovide a slit sheet or web of material 262 having a plurality of curledstrips of predetermined width.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 258 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 262 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method anddevice. Such common methods of slitting a sheet or web of materialinclude slitting a sheet or web of material to a to producesside-by-side strips of material wherein the longer dimension of thestrips is in the direction of travel of the sheet or web of material,i.e., the machine direction, or slitting a sheet or web of material sothat the longer dimension of the strips of material are obliquely to thedirection of travel of the sheet or web of material, i.e., obliquely tothe machine direction.

The slit sheet or web of material 262 is then passed through a cuttingunit 264 where the slit sheet or web of material 262 is cut to form thecurled decorative grass 232. Any conventional device and method can beemployed to cut the slit sheet or web of material 262 to form the curleddecorative grass 232 such as rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 236. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 236 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper havinga shape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 236 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

It should be noted that when the web or sheet of material has a widthcorresponding to the desired length of the curled grass to be producedby the systems described hereinabove, the sheet or web of material canbe cut either substantially perpendicular or obliquely to the directionof travel of the sheet or web of material which eliminates the need forslitting the sheet or web of material prior to cutting to form thecurled decorative grass. Further, each of the before described systems40, 71, 110, 140, 170, 200 and 230 can be modified in a similar mannerto include application of a stiffening or shape-sustaining agent to thesheet or web of material, either before or after imparting a curl to thesheet or web of material, in the manner hereinbefore describe withreference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

FIG. 17 illustrates schematically yet another system 270 for makingcurled decorative grass 272 from a sheet or web of substantially flatmaterial 274 capable of having a curl imparted thereto. The system 270includes a roll of material (not shown) mounted on a mandrel having abrake assembly (also not shown) so that the sheet or web of material 274can be controllably removed from the roll of material for passagethrough the system 270. The system 270 includes a pliable roller 276rotatably mounted on a shaft 278, a non-pliable roller 280 rotatablymounted on a shaft 282, a motor 284 operably connected to the shaft 282for rotatably driving the non-pliable roller 280 and a non-pliable backup roller 286 rotatably mounted on a shaft 288. The shafts 278, 282 and288 of the pliable roller 276, the non-pliable roller 280 and thenon-pliable back up roller 286 are substantially vertically aligned asshown. The non-pliable roller 280 is positioned adjacent the pliableroller 276 so that a depressed area 292 is formed in the pliable roller276 by the non-pliable roller 280, whereby passage of the sheet or webof material 274 through the depressed area 292 formed in the pliableroller 276 by the non-pliable roller 280 provides a curled sheet or webof material 294. That is, upon actuation of the motor 284, thenon-pliable roller 280 is rotated in a clockwise direction as indicatedby the arrow 296 and rotation of the non-pliable roller 280 causes thepliable roller 276 to rotate in a counter clockwise direction asindicated by the arrow 298. As the sheet or web of material 274 isadvanced through the depressed area 292 and between the pliable roller276 and the non-pliable roller 280, the curled sheet or web of material294 is formed by imparting a curl to the sheet or web of material 274.

The diameter of the non-pliable roller 280 can vary widely and willdepend upon the tightness of the curl to be imparted to the sheet or webof material 274. For example, the smaller the diameter of thenon-pliable roller 280, the tighter the curl formed in the curled sheetor web of material 294.

The system 270 further includes a pair of tension or nip rollers 300 and302, a slitter or shredder 304 where the curled sheet or web of material294 is slit to provide a slit sheet or web of material 306 having aplurality of curled strips of predetermined width, and a cutting unit308 where the curled strips of the slit sheet or web of material 306 arecut to form the curled decorative grass 272. The nip or tension rollers300 and 302 are positioned downstream of the pliable roller 276 and thenon-pliable roller 280 to ensure proper tension is maintained on thesheet or web of material 274 as same is drawn through the depressed area292 formed in the pliable roller 276 by the non-pliable roller 280 toprovided the curled sheet or web of material 294.

The curled sheet or web of material 294, after passage through the nipor tension rollers 300 and 302, is fed into the slitter or shredder 304where the curled sheet or web of material 294 is slit to provide theslit sheet or web of material 306 having a plurality of curled strips ofpredetermined width. The slit sheet or web of material 306 is then fedthrough the cutting unit 308 where the curled strips of the slit sheetor web of material 306 are cut to form the curled decorative grass 272.

The slitting of the curled sheet or web of material 294 to produce theslit sheet or web of material 306 can be accomplished using any wellknown method and device. Such common methods of slitting the curledsheet or web of material 294 include slitting the curled sheet or web ofmaterial 294 to produce side-by-side strips of material wherein thelonger dimension of the strips is in the direction of travel of thesheet or web of material, i.e., the machine direction, or slitting thecurled sheet or web of material 294 so that the longer dimension of thestrips of material are oblique to the direction of travel of the curledsheet or web of material 294, i.e., oblique to the machine direction.

The cutting of the curled slit sheet or web of material 306 to form thecurled decorative grass 272 can also be accomplished using any wellknown method and device. Examples of such conventional devices which canbe used as the cutting unit 308 and methods which can be employed to cutthe curled slit sheet or web of material 306 to form curled decorativegrass 272 are rotary knives, reciprocating knives, die cutting, lasercutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

To enhance the uniformity of the curled decorative grass 272 producedutilizing the system 270, it may be desirable to pass the slit sheet orweb of curled material 306 through a restraining assembly 310 disposedbetween the slitter 304 and the cutting unit 308 so as to maintain theslit sheet or web of curled material 306 in a substantially planar orflattened condition prior to introduction of the slit sheet or web ofcurled material 306 into the cutting unit 308. Any suitable apparatuscan be employed as the restraining assembly 310, such as a plurality ofspatially disposed guide wires 312 which extend between the slitter 304and the cutting unit 308 so as to provide a passageway 314 through whichthe slit sheet or web of material 306 is drawn or fed through prior topassage through the cutting unit 308.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 274. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 274 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper havinga shape sustaining agent applied to at least one side and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 274 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 18 illustrates schematically a system 320 for imparting a curl to asheet or web of substantially flat material 322 and thereby provide acurled sheet or web of material 324 which can be cut into curled stripsof material to provide decorative grass. The sheet or web of material322 is generally removed from a roll of material (not shown) mounted ona mandrel having a brake assembly (also not shown) so that the sheet orweb of material 322 can be controllably removed from the roll ofmaterial for passage through the system 320.

The system 320 includes a pliable endless belt or conveyor 326, a curlbar 328 having a curling edge 330 and a pair of nip or tension rollers332 and 334 for maintaining proper tension on the sheet or web ofmaterial 322 as the sheet or web of material 322 is drawn past thecurling edge 330 of the curling bar 328 to form the curled sheet or webof material 324. The curl bar 328 is positioned adjacent the pliableendless belt 326 so that a depressed area 336 is formed in the pliableendless belt 326 by the curling edge 330 of the curl bar 328substantially as shown, whereby passage of the sheet or web of material322 through the depressed area 336 formed in the pliable endless belt326 and around the curling edge 330 of the curl bar 328 imparts a curlto the sheet or web of material 322 which results in the formation ofthe curled sheet or web of material 324. The curled sheet or web ofmaterial 324 can then be slit and cut to provide a curled decorativegrass in the manner hereinbefore described.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto can be employedas the sheet or web of material 322. However, desirable results can beachieved wherein the sheet or web of material 322 is paper, crepedpaper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, and paper having alacquer applied to at least one side. Further, the sheet or web ofmaterial 322 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossed pattern on atleast one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

FIG. 19 illustrates schematically another system 340 for making a curleddecorative grass 341 in accordance with the present invention. Thesystem 340 includes a first mandrel 342 rotatably supported by a frame344, a drive assembly 346 for rotating the first mandrel 342 and a rollof material 348 which consists of a substantially flat web of material350 capable of having a curl imparted thereto. The roll of material 348is supported on a second mandrel 352 having a brake assembly 354operably connected thereto so that the web of material 350 can becontrollably withdrawn from the roll of material 348 and wrapped aboutthe first mandrel 342 as the first mandrel 342 is rotated in response toactuation of the drive assembly 346 and as a curled web of material 355is removed from the first mandrel 342 and cut to produce the curleddecorative grass 341. The second mandrel 352 is supported on a rollsupport assembly 356 so that the roll of material 348, and thus the webof material 350 withdrawn therefrom, are angularly disposed relative tothe first mandrel 342 rotatably supported by a frame 344 in thedirection of a distal end 358 of the first mandrel 342 substantially asshown.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto by wrapping aboutthe first mandrel 342 can be employed as the web of material 350.However, desirable results can be achieved wherein the web of material350 is paper, creped paper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film,wax paper, paper having a shape sustaining agent applied to at least oneside and paper having a lacquer applied to at least one side. Further,the web of material 350 may have a printed pattern and/or an embossedpattern on at least one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can beeither in register or out of register with the printed pattern.

The first mandrel 342 and the drive assembly 346 can be connected to theframe 344 in a conventional manner provided the first mandrel 342 isfreely rotatable in response to actuation of the drive assembly 346. Forexample, the frame 344 can be provided with a first opening 360 forrotatably mounting the first mandrel 342 and a spatially disposed secondopening 362 through which a drive shaft 364 of the drive assembly 346extends. The first mandrel 342 is bearingly mounted in the first opening360 by a bushing 366 and collars 368 and 370; and the drive shaft 364 ofthe drive assembly 346 is bearingly mounted in the second opening 362 bya bushing 372 and collars 374 and 376.

The drive assembly 346 further includes a motor 378 operably connectedto the drive shaft 364, a drive gear 380 and a driven gear 382. Thedrive gear 380 is mounted on or near a distal end 384 of the drive shaft364 so as to be aligned with the driven gear 382 which is mounted on thefirst mandrel 342 such that, upon actuation of the motor 378, rotationalmovement is imparted to the first mandrel 342 in response to rotationalmovement of the drive shaft 364, the drive gear 380 and the driven gear382.

The speed of rotation of the first mandrel 342 can be varied by varyingthe gear ratio of the drive gear 380 and the driven gear 382. Desirably,the gear ratio selected will be such that, as the web of material 350 iswithdrawn from the roll of material 348, the web of material 350 will bewound about the first mandrel 342 at substantially the same rate thatthe curled web of material 355 is removed from the first mandrel 342.Further, the tightness of the curl imparted to the web of material 350will depend to a large degree on the diameter of the first mandrel 342and the curling properties of the web of material 350.

It should be understood that while the drive assembly 346 has beendescribed as having a drive gear 380 and a driven gear 382, othercomponents could readily be used in place of the drive gear 380 and thedriven gear 382, such as a plurality of pulleys which are interconnectedby an appropriate number of belts.

The system 340 further includes a spray assembly 388 for spraying astiffening or shape sustaining agent onto the web of material 350 woundabout the first mandrel 342, a dryer 390 disposed downstream of thespray assembly 388, and a cutting unit 392 for cutting the curled web ofmaterial 355 to form the decorative grass 341. To enhance substantiallyuniform removal of the curled web of material 355 from the first mandrel342, while at the same time providing a substantially constant supply ofthe curled web of material 355 to the cutting unit 392, the system 340is also provided with a pair of nip or tension rollers 394 and 396.

The spray assembly 388 includes a spray nozzle 398 connected to a source(not shown) of a liquid composition containing a stiffening or shapesustaining agent via a conduit 400. Any liquid composition which iscompatible with the web of material 350 and which is capable ofretaining the desired curl in the curled web of material 355 can beemployed. Examples of liquid compositions containing a stiffening orshape sustaining agent which may be used in the practice of the presentinvention are aqueous starch solutions, aqueous sugar solutions,lacquers, glues and mixtures thereof and liquid, sprayable admixturescontaining water-proofing agents such as silicon-based polymers,latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers, fluorocarbons and mixturesthereof.

While the dryer 390 disposed downstream of the spray assembly 388 isillustrated as a tube dryer through which a portion of the first mandrelextends, it should be understood that any dryer can be employed in thepractice of the present invention provided the dryer is capable ofdrying the web of material 350 wrapped about the first mandrel 342 andsprayed with a liquid composition containing a stiffening or shapesustaining agent prior to removal of the curled web of material 355 fromthe first mandrel 342.

The cutting unit 392 cuts the curled web of material 355 into strips orsegments (which constitute the curled decorative grass 341) wherein thelonger dimension of the strips or segments is in the directionsubstantially perpendicular to the direction of travel of the curled webof material 355. Further, to enhance uniformity of the strips orsegments, the cutting unit is positioned such that the cutting elementsare angularly disposed so as to be substantially parallel to the angulardisposition of the web of material 350.

Any well known cutting device can be used as the cutting unit 392 forcutting the curled web of material 355 into strips or segments. Examplesof such devices which can be used as the cutting unit 392 and methodswhich can be employed to cut the curled web of material 355 to form thecurled decorative grass 341 are rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

FIG. 20 illustrates schematically another system 410 for making apre-curled web of material 412 (FIG. 21) which can be cut to form curleddecorative grass in accordance with the present invention. To form thepre-curled web of material 412, an effective amount of a stiffening orshape sustaining agent is applied to at least one surface of a sheet orweb of material to moisten the sheet or web of material and therebyprovide a moistened sheet or web of material 414. The moistened sheet orweb of material 414 is then wrapped about a mandrel 416 having apreselected diameter and the moistened sheet or web of material 414 isthen dried while wrapped about the mandrel 416 to form the pre-curledweb of material 412. Thereafter, the pre-curled web of material 412 isremoved from the mandrel 416 and cut into segments to provide adecorative grass.

Any material capable of having a curl imparted thereto and which can bemoistened with a stiffening or shape sustaining agent can be employed asthe sheet of web or material in the formation of the pre-curled web ofmaterial 412. The material may have a printed pattern and/or an embossedpattern on at least one surface thereof, and the embossed pattern can beeither in register or out of register with the printed pattern. Examplesof such materials are paper, creped paper, polymeric film, laminatedpolymeric film, wax paper and the like.

The stiffening or shape sustaining agent applied to the sheet or web ofmaterial to moisten the sheet or web of material and thereby provide amoistened sheet or web of material 414 can be any composition which iscompatible with the sheet or web of material and which is capable ofretaining the desired curl in the pre-curled web of material 412 can beemployed. Examples of stiffening or shape sustaining agent which may beused in the practice of the present invention are aqueous starchsolutions, aqueous sugar solutions, lacquers, glues and mixtures thereofand liquid, admixtures containing water-proofing agents such assilicon-based polymers, latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers,fluorocarbons and mixtures thereof.

The pre-curled material 412 can be formed manually by hand wrapping asheet or web of material about the mandrel 416, or the pre-curled web ofmaterial can be formed automatically using a system similar to thesystem 340 hereinbefore described with reference to FIG. 19. Thetightness of the curl imparted to the pre-curled web of material 412will depend to a large degree on the diameter of the mandrel 416 and thecurling properties of the sheet or web of material 414 moistened withthe stiffening or shape sustaining agent.

The pre-curled web of material 412 can be cut into strips or segmentswherein the longer dimension of the strips or segments is in thedirection substantially perpendicular to an elongated axis of thepre-curled web of material 412. Further, any well known cutting devicecan be used to cut the pre-curled web of material into strips orsegments. Cutting devices which can be used to cut the pre-curled web ofmaterial 412 into strips or segments include rotary knives,reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, airjet cutting and the like.

FIG. 22 illustrates schematically another system 420 for making curleddecorative grass 422 from a pre-curled web of material 424. Thepre-curled web of material 424 can be made of paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper and the like.Further, the pre-curled web of material 424 may have a printed patternand/or an embossed pattern, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

The system 420 for making curled decorative grass 422 from thepre-curled web of material 424 includes a first pair of nip or tensionrollers 426 and 428, a spray assembly 429, a curl bar 430 having acurling edge 432, a second pair of nip or tension rollers 434 and 436, adryer 437 and a slitter or shredder 438. In producing the curleddecorative grass 422 from the pre-curled web of material 424, thepre-curled web of material 424 is passed through the first pair oftension roller 426 and 428 whereupon the spray assembly 429 applies aneffective amount of a stiffening or shape sustaining agent to thepre-curled web of material 424 to provide a moistened pre-curled web ofmaterial 440. The moistened pre-curled web of material 440 is then drawnover the curling edge 432 of the curl bar 430 so as to provide amodified pre-curled web of material 442, and the modified pre-curled webof material 442 is then passed through the second pair of tensionrollers 434 and 436 and the dryer 437 to provide a substantially dry,modified pre-curled web of material 444. The dried modified pre-curledweb of material 444 is then fed into the slitter or shredder 438 whereinthe dried modified pre-curled web of material 444 is cut into segmentsor strips which constitute the curled decorative grass 422.

The first pair of tension rollers 426 and 428 cooperate with the secondpair of tension rollers 434 and 436 to maintain the desired tension onthe moistened pre-curled web of material 440 as the moistened pre-curledweb of material 440 is drawn over the curling edge 432 of the curl bar430. The curling edge 432 of the curl bar 430 is angularly disposedrelative to the travel path of the moistened pre-curled web of material440 so that as the moistened pre-curled web of material 440 is drawnover the curling edge 432 of the curl bar 430 additional curl isimparted thereto.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 432 of the curl bar 430relative to the moistened pre-curled web of material 440 can vary widelyand will be dependent to a large degree on the amount and type ofadditional curl to be imparted to the moistened pre-curled web ofmaterial 440, as well as to the curling properties of the moistenedpre-curled web of material 440. Generally, however, the curling edge 432of the curl bar 430 will be disposed at an angle of from about 15degrees to about 180 degrees relative to the moistened pre-curled web ofmaterial 440.

Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the pre-curled web of material 424 and which iscapable of wetting the pre-curled web of material 424 can be employed tomoisten the pre-curled web of material 424 to provide a moistenedpre-curled web of material 440. Examples of liquid compositionscontaining a stiffening or shape sustaining agent which may be used inthe practice of the present invention are aqueous starch solutions,aqueous sugar solutions, lacquers, glues and mixtures thereof andliquid, sprayable admixtures containing water-proofing agents such assilicon-based polymers, latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers,fluorocarbons and mixtures thereof.

The slitter or shredder 438 cuts the modified pre-curled web of material444 into segments or strips (i.e., the decorative grass 422) wherein thelonger dimension of the strips or segments is in the direction obliqueto the direction of travel of the dried modified pre-curled web ofmaterial 444. Any well known cutting device can be used as the slitteror shredder 438. Examples of such devices which can be used as theslitter or shredder 438 and methods which can be employed to cut thedried modified pre-curled web of material 444 to form the curleddecorative grass 422 are rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

FIG. 23 illustrates schematically another system 450 for making curleddecorative grass 452 from a pre-curled web of material 454. Thepre-curled web of material 454 can be made of paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper and the like.Further, the pre-curled web of material 454 may have a printed patternand/or an embossed pattern, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

The system 450 for making curled decorative grass 452 from thepre-curled web of material 454 includes a first pair of nip or tensionrollers 456 and 458, a curl bar 460 having a curling edge 462, a secondpair of nip or tension rollers 464 and 466, a spray assembly 468, adryer 470 and a slitter or shredder 472. In producing the curleddecorative grass 452 from the pre-curled web of material 454, thepre-curled web of material 454 is passed through the first pair oftension rollers 456 and 458 and drawn over the curling edge 462 of thecurl bar 460 so as to provide a modified pre-curled web of material 474.The modified pre-curled web of material 474 is then passed through thesecond pair of tension rollers 464 and 466 whereupon the spray assembly468 applies an effective amount of a stiffening or shape sustainingagent to the modified pre-curled web of material 474 to provide amoistened, modified pre-curled web of material 476. The moistened,modified pre-curled web of material 476 is then passed through the dryer470 to provide a substantially dry treated modified pre-curled material478 which is then passed into the slitter or shredder 472 wherein thedry treated modified pre-curled web of material 478 is cut into segmentsor strips which constitute the curled decorative grass 452.

The first pair of tension rollers 456 and 458 cooperate with the secondpair of tension rollers 464 and 466 to maintain the desired tension onthe pre-curled web of material 454 as the pre-curled web of material 454is drawn over the curling edge 462 of the curl bar 460. The curling edge462 of the curl bar 460 is angularly disposed relative to the travelpath of the pre-curled web of material 454 so that as the pre-curled webof material 454 is drawn over the curling edge 462 of the curl bar 460additional curl is imparted thereto.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 462 of the curl bar 460relative to the pre-curled web of material 454 can vary widely and willbe dependent to a large degree on the amount and type of additional curlto be imparted to the pre-curled web of material 454, as well as to thecurling properties of the pre-curled web of material 454. Generally,however, the curling edge 462 of the curl bar 460 will be disposed at anangle of from about 15 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to thepre-curled web of material 454.

Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the pre-curled web of material 454 and which iscapable of wetting the pre-curled web of material 454 can be employed tomoisten the modified pre-curled web of material 474 to provide themoistened, modified pre-curled web of material 476. Examples of liquidcompositions containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agent which maybe used in the practice of the present invention are aqueous starchsolutions, aqueous sugar solutions, lacquers, glues and mixtures thereofand liquid, sprayable admixtures containing water-proofing agents suchas silicon-based polymers, latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers,fluorocarbons and mixtures thereof.

Any conventional dryer can be employed as the dryer 470 to dry themoistened, modified pre-curled web of material 476. Since such dryersare well known and commercially available, no further comments ordescription of the dryer 470 is believed necessary to enable one skilledin the art to practice the inventive concept disclosed herein.

The slitter or shredder 472 cuts the treated, modified pre-curled web ofmaterial 474 into segments or strips (i.e., the decorative grass 452)wherein the longer dimension of the strips or segments is in thedirection oblique to the direction of travel of the treated, modifiedpre-curled web of material 474. Any well known cutting device can beused as the slitter or shredder 472. Examples of such devices which canbe used as the slitter or shredder 472 and methods which can be employedto cut the treated, modified pre-curled web of material 474 to form thecurled decorative grass 452 are rotary knives, reciprocating knives, diecutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like.

FIG. 24 illustrates schematically still another system 480 for makingcurled decorative grass 482 from a pre-curled web of material 484. Thepre-curled web of material 484 can be made of paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper and the like.Further, the pre-curled web of material 484 may have a printed patternand/or an embossed pattern, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

The system 480 for making curled decorative grass 482 from thepre-curled web of material 484 includes a spray assembly 486 forapplying an effective amount of a stiffening or shape sustaining agentto the pre-curled web of material 484 to provide a moistened pre-curledweb of material 488 and a dryer 490 for drying the moistened pre-curledweb of material 488 to produce a treated pre-curled web of material 492.Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the pre-curled web of material 484 and which iscapable of wetting the pre-curled web of material 484 can be sprayedonto the pre-curled web of material 484 by the spray assembly 486 toproduce the moistened pre-curled web of material 488. Examples of liquidcompositions containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agent which maybe used in the practice of the present invention are aqueous starchsolutions, aqueous sugar solutions, lacquers, glues and mixtures thereofand liquid, sprayable admixtures containing water-proofing agents suchas silicon-based polymers, latex-based polymers, acrylic polymers,fluorocarbons and mixtures thereof.

Any conventional dryer can be employed as the dryer 490 to dry themoistened pre-curled web of material 488. Since such dryers are wellknown and commercially available, no further comments or description ofthe dryer 490 is believed necessary to enable one skilled in the art topractice the inventive concept disclosed herein.

The system 480 further includes a first pair of nip or tension rollers494 and 496, a curl bar 498 having a curling edge 500, a second pair ofnip or tension rollers 502 and 504 and a slitter or shredder 506. Inproducing the curled decorative grass 482 from the treated pre-curledweb of material 492, the treated pre-curled web of material 492 ispassed through the first pair of tension roller 494 and 496 and drawnover the curling edge 500 of the curl bar 498 to further curl thetreated pre-curled web of material 492 and provide a modified pre-curledweb of material 508. The modified pre-curled web of material 508 is thenpassed through the second pair of tension rollers 502 and 504 and intothe slitter or shredder 506 wherein the modified pre-curled web ofmaterial 508 is cut into segments or strips which constitute the curleddecorative grass 482.

The first pair of tension rollers 494 and 496 cooperate with the secondpair of tension rollers 502 and 504 to maintain the desired tension onthe treated pre-curled web of material 492 as the treated pre-curled webof material 492 is drawn over the curling edge 500 of the curl bar 498.The curling edge 500 of the curl bar 498 is angularly disposed relativeto the travel path of the treated pre-curled web of material 492 so thatas the treated pre-curled web of material 492 is drawn over the curlingedge 500 of the curl bar 498 additional curl is imparted to the treatedpre-curled web of material 492.

The angular disposition of the curling edge 500 of the curl bar 498relative to the treated pre-curled web of material 492 can vary widelyand will be dependent to a large degree on the amount and type ofadditional curl to be imparted to the treated pre-curled web of material492, as well as to the curling properties of the treated pre-curled webof material 492. Generally, however, the curling edge 500 of the curlbar 498 will be disposed at an angle of from about 15 degrees to about180 degrees relative to the treated pre-curled web of material 492.

The slitter or shredder 506 cuts the modified pre-curled web of material508 into segments or strips (i.e., the curled decorative grass 482)wherein the longer dimension of the strips or segments is in thedirection substantially perpendicular or oblique to the direction oftravel of the modified pre-curled web of material 480. Any well-knowncutting device can be used as the slitter or shredder 506. Examples ofsuch devices which can be used as the slitter or shredder 506 andmethods which can be employed to cut the modified pre-curled web ofmaterial 508 to form the curled decorative grass 482 are rotary knives,reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, airjet cutting and the like.

FIG. 25 illustrates schematically another system 520 for making curleddecorative grass 522 from a pre-curled web of material 524. Thepre-curled web of material 524 can be made of paper, creped paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper and the like.Further, the pre-curled web of material 524 may have a printed patternand/or an embossed pattern, and the embossed pattern can be either inregister or out of register with the printed pattern.

The system 520 for making curled decorative grass 522 from thepre-curled web of material 524 includes a pair of nip or tension rollers526 and 528 and a slitter or shredder 530. The slitter or shredder 530is provided with a blade 532 and a spray assembly 534 for spraying astiffening or shape sustaining agent on the blade 532 during cutting ofthe pre-curled web of material 524 into strips or segments. In producingthe curled decorative grass 522 from the pre-curled web of material 524,the pre-curled web of material 524 is passed through the tension rollers526 and 528 and into the slitter or shredder 530 wherein the blade 532cuts the pre-curled web of material 524 into segments or strips whichconstitute the curled decorative grass 522. During the cutting of thepre-curled web of material 524, the blade is sprayed with a stiffeningor shape-sustaining agent.

Any liquid composition containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich is compatible with the pre-curled web of material 524 can besprayed onto the blade 532 of the slitter or shredder 530 during thecutting or shredding of the pre-curled web of material 524. Examples ofliquid compositions containing a stiffening or shape sustaining agentwhich may be used in the practice of the present invention are aqueousstarch solutions, aqueous sugar solutions, lacquers, glues and mixturesthereof and liquid, sprayable admixtures containing water-proofingagents such as silicon-based polymers, latex-based polymers, acrylicpolymers, fluorocarbons and mixtures thereof.

It should be noted that any of the above described embodiments may alsobe modified so as to provide curled decorative grass wherein theindividual segments or strands of curled decorative grass remainattached via an attach point 600, such as shown for example in FIG. 26.In such an alternative, when a web or sheet of material is slit toprovide a slit sheet or web of material having a plurality of strips ina manner described hereinabove, an uncut area is left in the sheet ofmaterial such that the uncut area serves as an attach point 600 for thedecorative grass. Further, when the curled strips of the slit sheet orweb of material are cut to form the curled decorative grass in a mannerdescribed hereinabove, at least a portion of the uncut area may bemaintained so that the strands of decorative grass remain connected atone or more attach points 600. The individual segments or strands ofcurled decorative grass may also be attached to another piece ofdissimilar material, such as for example cardboard. Methods of providingdecorative grass attached at an attach point have been disclosed in U.S.Ser. No. 10/263,059, which has previously been incorporated by referenceherein.

By providing an attach point 600 of the same material or dissimilarmaterial to the individual strands of decorative grass, the strands ofdecorative grass can be manipulated in an easier manner, by holding theindividual strands of decorative grass in the same direction and insubstantially the same configuration, and preventing loss of individualstrands of decorative grass. The attach point 600 provides an additionaladvantage in that it keeps the strands or segments of decorative grasstogether in a neat bundle which provides for a decorative appearance butwhich also provide a cushioning effect so as to prevent damage tocontents of baskets or boxes or other packages while avoiding theproblem of having to clean up spilled strands of decorative grass.

FIGS. 27-29 illustrate different curl bar dispositions that may beutilized with any of the systems for producing curled decorative grassdescribed herein. In each of FIGS. 27-29, an angle of a portion of thecurling edge of the curl bar relative to a direction of travel of thesheet or web of material is different from an angle of another portionof the curling edge of the curl bar relative to the direction of travelof the sheet or web of material.

In FIG. 27, a sheet or web of material 650 is drawn over a curl bar 652having a curling edge 654. The curl bar 652 is disposed at an anglerelative to a direction of travel 656 of the sheet or web of material650 such that a portion of the curling edge 654 of the curl bar 652adjacent a first end 658 of the curl bar 652 comes into contact with thesheet or web of material 650 before a portion of the curling edge 654 ofthe curl bar 652 adjacent a second end 660 of the curling edge 654 ofthe curl bar 652. The second end 660 of the curling edge 654 of the curlbar 652 is elevated in a horizontal plane when compared to the first end658 of the curling edge 654 of the curl bar 652.

In FIG. 28, a sheet of web of material 670 is drawn over a curl bar 672having a curling edge 674. The curl bar 672 is disposed at an anglerelative to a direction of travel 676 of the sheet or web of material650 such that a portion of the curling edge 674 of the curl bar 672adjacent a first end 678 of the curl bar 672 is elevated in a verticalplane when compared to a portion of the curling edge 674 of the curl bar672 adjacent a second end 680 of the curling edge 674 of the curl bar672.

In FIG. 29, a sheet of web of material 690 is drawn over a curl bar 692having a curling edge 694. The curl bar 692 is disposed at an anglerelative to a direction of travel 696 of the sheet or web of material690 such that a portion of the curling edge 694 of the curl bar 692adjacent a first end 698 of the curl bar 692 is elevated in both avertical plane and a horizontal plane when compared to a portion of thecurling edge 694 of the curl bar 692 adjacent a second end 700 of thecurling edge 694 of the curl bar 692.

Each of the systems described herein produce a curled decorative grass,the configuration of which will be determined by the particular systememployed. Changes may be made in the construction and operation of thevarious parts, elements and assemblies described herein and the steps orthe sequence of steps of the methods described herein without departingfrom the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined in thefollowing claims.

1. A method for making curled grass for use as a packing material, ananimal bedding, cat litter, mulch for soil and as a media for plants,the curled grass produced from a material wherein the curled grass has amulti-sided cross section, a length and a width, and wherein the methodcomprises the steps of: providing a material; curling the material bypassing the material between a pliable roller positioned adjacent anon-pliable roller, wherein a depressed area is formed in thenon-pliable roller by the pliable roller and whereby passage of thematerial through the depressed area formed in the pliable roller by thenon-pliable roller provides a curled material; cutting or slitting thecurled material to provide strips of curled grass having at least one ofa substantially clock spring configuration and a compression tensionspring configuration.
 2. The method for making curled grass of claim 1wherein, in the step of providing a material, the material is selectedfrom the group consisting of paper, polymeric film, laminated polymericfilm, wax paper, paper having a shape-sustaining agent applied to atleast one side thereof and paper having a lacquer applied to at leastone side thereof.
 3. The method for making curled grass of claim 1wherein, in the step of providing a material, the material is providedwith at least one of a printed pattern and an embossed pattern on atleast a portion of one surface thereof such that at least a substantialportion of the curled grass formed therefrom contains at least a portionof at least one of the printed pattern and the embossed pattern.
 4. Amethod for making curled decorative grass for use as a packing material,an animal bedding, cat litter, mulch for soil and as a media for plants,the curled decorative grass produced from a material wherein the curleddecorative grass has a multi-sided cross section, a length and a width,and wherein the method comprises the steps of: providing a material;slitting the material to provide a plurality of strips; and curling thestrips of material by passing the material between a pliable rollerpositioned adjacent a non-pliable roller, wherein a depressed area isformed in the non-pliable roller by the pliable roller and wherebypassage of the material through the depressed area formed in the pliableroller by the non-pliable roller provides strips of curled decorativegrass.
 5. The method for making curled decorative grass of claim 4wherein method further comprises the step of cutting the plurality ofstrips to provide curled decorative grass.
 6. The method for makingcurled grass of claim 4 wherein, in the step of providing a material,the material is selected from the group consisting of paper, polymericfilm, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper having ashape-sustaining agent applied to at least one side thereof and paperhaving a lacquer applied to at least one side thereof.
 7. The method formaking curled grass of claim 4 wherein, in the step of providing amaterial, the material is provided with at least one of a printedpattern and an embossed pattern on at least a portion of one surfacethereof such that at least a substantial portion of the curled grassformed therefrom contains at least a portion of at least one of theprinted pattern and the embossed pattern.
 8. A method for making curleddecorative grass for use as a packing material, an animal bedding, catlitter, mulch for soil and as a media for plants, the curled decorativegrass produced from a material wherein the curled decorative grass has amulti-sided cross section, a length and a width, and wherein the methodcomprises the steps of: providing a material; cutting the material toprovide a plurality of strips; and curling the material by passing thematerial between a pliable roller positioned adjacent a non-pliableroller, wherein a depressed area is formed in the non-pliable roller bythe pliable roller and whereby passage of the material through thedepressed area formed in the pliable roller by the non-pliable rollerprovides strips of curled decorative grass.
 9. The method for makingcurled decorative grass of claim 8 wherein method further comprises thestep of slitting a material to provide the plurality of strips.
 10. Themethod for making curled grass of claim 8 wherein, in the step ofproviding a material, the material is selected from the group consistingof paper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paperhaving a shape-sustaining agent applied to at least one side thereof andpaper having a lacquer applied to at least one side thereof.
 11. Themethod for making curled grass of claim 8 wherein, in the step ofproviding a material, the material is provided with at least one of aprinted pattern and an embossed pattern on at least a portion of onesurface thereof such that at least a substantial portion of the curledgrass formed therefrom contains at least a portion of at least one ofthe printed pattern and the embossed pattern.
 12. A method for makingcurled grass for use as a packing material, an animal bedding, catlitter, mulch for soil and as a media for plants, the curled grassproduced from a material wherein the curled grass has a multi-sidedcross section, a length and a width, and wherein the method comprisesthe steps of: providing a material; curling the material by passing thematerial between a pliable roller positioned adjacent a non-pliableroller, wherein a depressed area is formed in the non-pliable roller bythe pliable roller and whereby passage of the material through thedepressed area formed in the pliable roller by the non-pliable rollerprovides a curled material; cutting the curled material to a desiredlength; and slitting the curled material to provide strips of curledgrass having at least one of a substantially clock spring configurationand a compression tension spring configuration.
 13. The method formaking curled grass of claim 12 wherein, in the step of providing amaterial, the material is selected from the group consisting of paper,polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paper having ashape-sustaining agent applied to at least one side thereof and paperhaving a lacquer applied to at least one side thereof.
 14. The methodfor making curled grass of claim 12 wherein, in the step of providing amaterial, the material is provided with at least one of a printedpattern and an embossed pattern on at least a portion of one surfacethereof such that at least a substantial portion of the curled grassformed therefrom contains at least a portion of at least one of theprinted pattern and the embossed pattern.
 15. A method for making curledgrass for use as a packing material, an animal bedding, cat litter,mulch for soil and as a media for plants, the curled grass produced froma material wherein the curled grass has a multi-sided cross section, alength and a width, and wherein the method comprises the steps of:providing a material; curling the material by passing the materialbetween a pliable roller positioned adjacent a non-pliable roller,wherein a depressed area is formed in the non-pliable roller by thepliable roller and whereby passage of the material through the depressedarea formed in the pliable roller by the non-pliable roller provides acurled material; slitting the curled material to provide strips ofcurled material; and cutting the strips of curled material to providestrips of curled grass having at least one of a substantially clockspring configuration and a compression tension spring configuration. 16.The method for making curled grass of claim 15 wherein, in the step ofproviding a material, the material is selected from the group consistingof paper, polymeric film, laminated polymeric film, wax paper, paperhaving a shape-sustaining agent applied to at least one side thereof andpaper having a lacquer applied to at least one side thereof.
 17. Themethod for making curled grass of claim 15 wherein, in the step ofproviding a material, the material is provided with at least one of aprinted pattern and an embossed pattern on at least a portion of onesurface thereof such that at least a substantial portion of the curledgrass formed therefrom contains at least a portion of at least one ofthe printed pattern and the embossed pattern.